Suspended arrow rest assembly for a sling bow

ABSTRACT

An arrow rest is mounted to a sling shot to convert a sling shot to a sling bow. The arrow rest is elastically suspended between forked arms to absorb impact forces by a pouch on the arrow rest when an arrow is shot from the converted sling bow. Also, a contact surface of the arrow rest may be positioned below a plane defined by slings of the sling bow so that the arrow rest does not interfere with the trajectory of the arrow when shot out of the sling bow. The arrow rest may also rotate backward and forward during pull back of the arrow and forward movement of the arrow during use.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

Not Applicable

STATEMENT RE: FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH/DEVELOPMENT

Not Applicable

BACKGROUND

The embodiments and aspects disclosed herein relate to a suspended arrow rest assembly for converting a sling shot to sling bow, and to a dedicated sling bow.

A sling bow is a sling shot style device that is capable of projecting an arrow instead of a slingshot ammunition. A nock of the arrow engages a receiving pouch typically used to hold the slingshot ammunition. A shaft of the arrow is supported on a sling bow rest which is positioned between two posts. To shoot the arrow, the nock and the pouch are pulled backward to tension elastic bands. When the nock is released, the arrow is projected toward the target. Unfortunately, the current sling bow configuration disturbs the arrow's intended direction of travel. As such, the point of aim is not the point of impact. One or more aspects of the prior art sling bow contributes to inaccurate shooting and, in turn, increase safety risks associated with sling bow use.

Accordingly, there is a need in the art for an improved sling bow.

BRIEF SUMMARY

A suspended arrow rest assembly is provided which may be used for converting a sling shot to a sling bow. Alternatively, the suspended arrow rest assembly may also be permanently integrated into a frame for a dedicated sling bow. An arrow rest of the suspended arrow rest assembly may be elastically suspended between forked arms of a frame. The arrow rest of the assembly may be positioned below a plane defined by elongate elastic members (i.e., slings) that propels an arrow forward. The slings are attached to a sling pouch and to the forked arms. When the sling pouch is pulled backward to tension the slings, both slings reside in a common plane so that the projectile (i.e., arrow) can be projected in a forward direction at a midpoint between the forked arms. The arrow rest is positioned below this plane to mitigate interference with the arrow's trajectory. To shoot the sling bow, the arrow is supported on the arrow rest. The trajectory of the arrow is not affected by the arrow rest since the surface where the arrow contacts the arrow rest (i.e., contact support surface of the arrow rest) is disposed below the plane defined by the slings. Additionally, elastic members that suspend the arrow rest between the forked arms absorb the impact of the sling pouch into the arrow rest when the arrow and the arrow rest are propelled toward its target. Since the arrow rest is suspended between forked arms of the sling bow, the arrow rest is allowed to rotate during operation to move out of the way of the arrow to mitigate interference with the arrow's trajectory. The suspended arrow rest assembly can be used to convert a sling shot to a sling bow to allow one to use a traditional sling shot with an arrow rather than a typical, compact ammunition (e.g., slingshot ammunition). When converted for such purposes, the sling shot may be deemed a sling bow. It is also contemplated that the arrow rest assembly may be permanently integrated into a frame for providing a dedicated sling bow.

More particularly, a sling bow for shooting an arrow is disclosed. The sling bow may comprise a sling bow frame, first and second slings, a sling pouch, first and second segments of a suspension band and an arrow rest. The sling bow frame may include a hand grip with upper and lower portions and a pair of forked arms that extend from the upper portion of the hand grip. The forked arms may each have end portions.

The first and second slings may be attached to the end portions of the forked arms. The sling pouch may have a nock receiver. The first and second slings may be attached to opposed end portions of the sling pouch. The first and second segments of the suspension band may respectively be attached to the forked arms. The first and second segments of the suspension band may be fabricated from an elongate elastic material. The arrow rest may be attached to the first and second segments of the suspension band for elastically suspending the arrow rest between the forked arms. The arrow rest may have two prongs extending upward from a base.

The two segments of the suspension band may be attached to each of the forked arms of the sling bow frame for positioning a forward to rearward rotational angle of the arrow rest at an at-rest position. A proximal support of the arrow rest may provide support to a shaft of the arrow so as to position the shaft and arrow at or below a plane defined by the first and second slings for mitigating interference with the arrow as the arrow is being propelled forward by the first and second slings.

The arrow rest may have a distal support so that the shaft of the arrow is supported by the contact surface/proximal support and the distal support when the arrow is pulled backward. The arrow rest is also positioned in the backward position when the arrow is supported by both the proximal and distal supports.

The forked prongs may have an outer surface having a coefficient of friction sufficient to allow rearward travel of the arrow to cause frictional forces between the shaft of the arrow and the outer surface to rotate the arrow rest to the backward position.

In another aspect, a conversion kit for converting a sling shot to a sling bow is disclosed. The sling shot to which the conversion kit is mounted may include a frame having a hand grip with an upper and a lower portion and a pair of forked arms that extend from the upper portion of the hand grip. The forked arms may each have end portions.

The kit may comprise first and second slings, a sling pouch, first and second segments of the suspension band, and an arrow rest. The first and second slings may be attached to the end portions of the forked arms. The sling pouch may have a nock receiver. The first and second slings may be attached to opposed end portions of the sling pouch. The first and second segments of the suspension band may respectively be attached to the forked arms. The first and second segments of the suspension band may be fabricated from an elongate elastic material. The arrow rest may be attached to the first and second segments of the suspension band for elastically suspending the arrow rest between the forked arms. The arrow rest may have two prongs extending upward from a base.

The two segments of the suspension band may be attached to each of the forked arms of the frame for positioning a forward to rearward rotational angle of the arrow rest at an at-rest position. A contact surface or proximal support of the arrow rest provides support to a shaft of the arrow and is positioned at or below a plane defined by the first and second slings when attached to the forked arms and tensioned. This positioning of the proximal support and the plane defined by the slings mitigate interference with the arrow as the arrow is being propelled forward by the first and second slings.

The arrow rest may have a distal support so that the shaft of the arrow is supported by the proximal support (i.e., contact surface) and the distal support when the arrow is pulled backward and the arrow rest is positioned in the backward position during use.

The forked prongs may have an outer surface having a coefficient of friction sufficient to allow rearward travel of the arrow to cause frictional forces between the shaft of the arrow and the outer surface to rotate the arrow rest to the backward position during use.

In another aspect, a method for using a sling bow is disclosed. The method may comprise the steps of disposing a nock of an arrow in a nock receiver; pulling the nock of the arrow and the nock receiver rearward to tension slings of the sling bow; rotating an arrow rest from an at-rest position to a backward position due to frictional forces between an outer surface of forked prongs of the arrow rest and a shaft of the arrow; disposing the shaft of the arrow between the forked prongs and within a distal support of the arrow rest; releasing the nock of the arrow and the nock receiver so that the tensioned slings propel the arrow toward a target; rotating the arrow rest toward the at-rest position as the arrow travels forward; over rotating the arrow rest to a forward position so that the forked prongs are traversed out of the way to mitigate interference with the arrows trajectory; and absorbing impact forces of the nock receiver on the arrow rest.

In the method, the step of rotating the arrow rest from the at-rest position to the backward position may include the step of biasing the arrow rest toward the at-rest position.

The biasing the arrow rest step may include the step of twisting two segments of the suspension band attached to each side of the nock receiver and the forked arms.

The absorbing step may include the step of deflecting the arrow rest by way of the suspension band.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other features and advantages of the various embodiments disclosed herein will be better understood with respect to the following description and drawings, in which like numbers refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a sling bow.

FIGS. 2A-B are alternate perspective views of an arrow rest assembly.

FIGS. 3A-C are fragmentary views of an arrow rest as an arrow is progressively drawn back through it.

FIG. 4 is a rear view of an arrow rest assembly with an arrow drawn back in it.

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary view of an arrow rest as an arrow is shot through it.

FIG. 6 is a rear view of an arrow rest assembly with an arrow show through it.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Referring now to the drawings, a sling bow 9 is shown which allows the shooter to shoot an arrow 30 more accurately through the sling bow 9. When arming the sling bow 9, the user places a nock 54 of an arrow 30 in a pouch 18. A shaft of the arrow 30 is placed between forked prongs 22 on an arrow rest 21. The user grips the pouch 18 and the nock 54 of the arrow 30. The user pulls the pouch 18 and the nock of the arrow 30 backward to tension the slings (e.g., elongate elastic members) 16. As the user pulls the arrow 30 backward, the arrow rest 21 rotates backward until the shaft of the arrow 30 is disposed within the distal support 38 (see FIGS. 3A-4). The arrow rest 21 rotates backward due to friction between the shaft of the arrow 30 and friction pads 34 on forked prongs 22 of the arrow rest 21. The arrow rest 21 is suspended by an elastic suspension band 24 that opposes the backward rotation of the arrow rest 21. The suspension band 24 biases the arrow rest 21 toward the initial at-rest position which is shown in FIG. 3A. At this point, the forked prongs 22 and the distal support 38 provide a sight picture to the user for aiming, as shown in FIG. 4. The suspension band 24 urges the arrow rest 21 forward but is held in the back position by the shaft of the arrow 30. When the user releases the nock 54 and the pouch 18, the slings 16 propels the arrow 30 forward. As the arrow 30 is propelled forward, the arrow rest 21 also rotates forward due to the bias force of the suspension band 24 and the friction between the shaft of the arrow 30 and the friction pads 34 of the arrow rest 21. The arrow 30 is propelled forward unimpeded because the arrow rest 21 is slightly below a plane defined by the slings 16 which also define the plane in which the arrow 30 is projected. The vanes 32 of the arrow 30 may contact the arrow rest but the arrow rest does not interfere with the trajectory of the arrow 30 since the arrow rest 21 is supported on the suspension band 24 and the arrow rest 21 generally moves out of the way when the vanes 32 of the arrow 30 pass by the arrow rest 21. The arrow rest 21 over rotates in the forward direction (see FIGS. 5 and 6) so that forked prongs 22 are not in the up position when the vanes 32 of the arrow 30 passes. Instead, the forked prongs 22 are in the forward position as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6. As such, the movable and rotateable nature of the arrow rest 21 mitigates interference with the trajectory of the arrow or alter its intended course as the arrow 30 is being propelled forward toward its target. Also, the suspension band 24 absorbs the impact force when the pouch 18 hits the arrow rest 21.

More particularly, referring to FIG. 1, a frame 10 of a sling shot is converted into a sling bow 9. The converted sling bow 9 may include a hand grip 12, a wrist support 14 attached to a bottom portion of the hand grip 12, and two forked arms 15 stemming from an upper portion of the hand grip 12. The forked arms 15 may be spaced apart from each other and define upper terminal end portions. The sling bow 9 may further include first and second slings 16 that are secured to terminal end portions of the forked arms 15. When the slings 16 are under tension, the slings 16 provide the launching force to propel the arrow 30 forward. The slings 16 may be any elastic material that provides a restoring force to propel the arrow 30 forward. A sling pouch 18 having a nock receiver 17 that accommodates a back end (i.e., nock) of an arrow 30 may be attached to the slings 16 so that releasing a drawn arrow 30 may cause the restoring force of the slings 16 to pull the sling pouch 18 toward the forked arms 15 of the sling bow frame 10, and project the arrow 30 toward the target 50 (see FIG. 4).

Referring now to FIGS. 2A and 2B, the arrow rest assembly 20 includes a rigid arrow rest 21, suspension band 24 and clamps 26. The arrow rest 21 may have forwardly curved forked prongs 22 that protrude from a base. A converging point 48 of the forked prongs 22 (i.e., valley) provides a proximal support or contact point or surface 48 for a shaft of the arrow 30 when the arrow 30 is initially being loaded into the sling bow 9 and pulled back. The arrow rest 21 allows a user to maintain the arrow 30 in a steady position when tensioning the sling 16 until the user feels that the slings 16 are sufficiently tensioned. In tensioning the slings, the arrow rest 21 rotates backward (see FIGS. 3A-3C) and continues to provide support for the shaft of the arrow 30. When the arrow 30 is fully pulled back and the sling 16 tensioned, the arrow rest 21 is fully rotated to the back position. At this position, the arrow rest 21 also provides the user with a sight picture to identify and line up a target in the sight picture, as shown in FIG. 4.

An outer peripheral portion of the base of the arrow rest 21 may have a plurality of holes 36 to threadably receive suspension band 24. Two segments of a suspension band 24 may be disposed on each of the opposed sides of the arrow rest 21. The two segments of the suspension band 24 is also attached to the forked arms 15 to suspend the arrow rest 21 between the forked arms 22. The suspension band 24 may be a single piece of elastic cord that is threaded through the plurality of holes 36 of the arrow rest 21 and through holes 40 of the clamps 26. The position and configuration of the suspension band 24 are such that the suspension band 24 holds the arrow rest 21 in the initial at-rest position shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B. The upper distal tips of the prongs 22 are disposed in front of the band 24 as shown in FIG. 3A in the at rest position. The suspension band 24 is tensioned so that the arrow rest 21 is held in a taut position but is still allowed to rotate and absorb the impact force of the pouch 18 when the pouch 18 hits the arrow rest 21 during use.

The suspension band 24 may be attached to the forked arms 15 by securing clamping devices 26 on each of the forked arms 15. Typically, the slings 16 are fabricated from a hollow elongate elastic tubular member which is slipped over the upper distal end portions of the forked arm 15 and held in place by friction. The clamping devices 26 may be attached over the portion of the slings 16 that is slipped over the forked arms 15. As illustrated in FIG. 2A, the clamping devices 26 may have through holes 40 adapted to threadably receive the suspension band 24. The through holes 40 receive the suspension band 24 to secure the arrow rest 21 to the forked arms 15.

The suspension band 24 may be an elastic elongate material that can also be threadably engageable with the plurality of holes 36 of the arrow rest 21 and the through holes 40 of the clamping mechanism 26. The arrow rest 21 itself may be fabricated from a material capable of avoiding damage associated with repeated use. For example, the arrow rest 21 may comprise a single piece of molded plastic or acrylic. Each time an arrow 30 is propelled through the sling bow 9, the pouch 18 hits the arrow rest 21 thereby possibly causing damage to the arrow rest 21. The arrow rest 21 may be fabricated from a material sufficient to withstand repeated abuse and contact with the pouch 18.

The suspension band 24 may also help to mitigate damage to the arrow rest 21 by absorbing impact forces from the pouch 18. The suspension band 24 may be a type of elastic or rubber cord having a fabric covering. The elasticity of the suspension band 24 absorbs the impact force. The fabric covering may protect the elastic or rubber cord from damage caused by exposure to air and moisture, as well as physical contact with contaminants over the course of repeated uses. For example, the one or more suspension band 24 may be a polyester fiber fabric covered elastic cording. The elastic cording may be about 1 mm to about 2 mm in diameter, and more preferably about 1.5 mm in diameter. The diameter of the elastic cording may be sized to fit snugly with the plurality of holes 36 of the base of the arrow rest 21 so that the arrow rest 21 does not slide horizontally left and right between the forked arms 15 along the segments of the suspension band 24.

The suspension band 24 may be secured in their threaded engagement to the arrow rest 21 and sling bow frame 10 by threading opposed distal end portions with a guard member 29 (see FIGS. 2B and 6) and tying the end portions of the suspension band 24 into a knot underneath the base of the arrow rest 21. The end portions of the suspension band 24 may be held in the tied position with the guard member 29 by flipping the guard member 29 over, as shown in FIG. 6. The guard member 29 may be a thin panel of material such as plastic or acrylic with holes for receiving the suspension band 24.

One or more clamping devices 26 may be used to secure the slings 16 to each of the forked arms 15. In the figures, one clamping device is used as a mounting point for each of the forked arms 15. The clamping devices 26 may be vertically positioned on the forked arms 15 so that the contact point or proximal support 48 of the arrow rest 21 is below a plane 42 (see FIG. 3A) defined by the slings 16. The plane 42 is defined by the slings 16 when the pouch 18 is pulled backward to tension the slings 16. The lowest point between the forked prongs 22 of the arrow rest 21 is the contact point or proximal support 48 to support the shaft of the arrow 30. The forked prongs 22 laterally holds the shaft of the arrow 30 in place when the user draws the arrow 30 back and releases the arrow 30 to propel the arrow forward. The contact point or proximal support 48 is disposed about Vi an outer diameter of the shaft of the arrow 30 so that the arrow 30 resides within the plane 42 when the arrow is drawn back. It is also contemplated that the contact point or proximal support 48 may be in line with the plane 42 or disposed up to about two (2) times the outer diameter of the shaft of the arrow 30 below the plane 42. Thus, when the shaft of the arrow 30 is supported by the arrow rest 21 and the nock 54 of the arrow 30 is engaged in the sling pouch 18, the arrow 30 and the stretched slings 16 are aligned to each other or within the plane 42. When the arrow 30 is released, the arrow 30 shoots outs straight within the plane 42 and in alignment with the contact point or proximal support 48 and in the middle of the forked prongs 22. Thus, the shots made with the sling bow 9 are significantly more accurate.

The clamping devices 26 may be plastic hose clamps having a hollow region to receive the forked arms 15 of the sling bow frame 10. The vertical position of the clamping devices 26 is adjustable by way of butterfly screws, wing nuts, or other types of adjustable bolts 28. The clamping devices 26 may also include the through hole 40 to threadably receive the suspension band 24.

When the arrow 30 is not engaged with the arrow rest 21, the suspension band maintains the arrow rest 21 in an at-rest position (see FIG. 3A). During use, the suspension band 24 allows the arrow rest 21 to rotate forwardly and backwardly over the course of the arrow's travel and also move forward and backward when the pouch 18 hits the arrow rest 21 after the arrow 30 is released. The suspension band 24 provides a restoring force that returns the arrow rest 21 to the at rest position after the arrow 30 is projected from the sling bow 9. FIGS. 3A-C illustrate rotation of the arrow rest 21 backward as the arrow 30 is pulled backward in preparation of shooting the arrow 30 out of the sling bow 9. The shaft of the arrow 30 is initially placed between the forked prongs 22 on the proximal support 48, as shown in FIG. 3A. The nock 54 of the arrow 30 is then aligned and engaged to the pouch 18. The nock 54 of the arrow 30 is received in the nock receiver 17. The user grips the pouch 18 and the nock 54 of the arrow together, then gently pulls the arrow 30 back, as shown in FIG. 3B. In addition, the arrow rest 21 begins to rotate backward until it reaches the position shown in FIG. 3C. As the user pulls the arrow 30 back, the slings 16 are tensioned and the arrow rest 21 is biased to the forward direction and the arrow head approaches the arrow rest 21. The arrow rest 21 also has a distal support 38 within which the shaft of the arrow 30 will ultimately be supported in. The distal support 38 is shown in FIGS. 2B and 4. When the shaft of the arrow 30 is disposed in the distal support 38, the distal support 38 and/or the forked prongs 22 functions as a view finder or sight picture to define a point of aim of the sling bow 9.

The backward rotation of the arrow rest 21 may further be facilitated by wrapping or coating the forked prongs 22 of the arrow rest 21 with friction material 34. The friction material 34 may be a tape or tube (as shown) that is placed around the forked prongs 22. Thus, when an arrow 30 is pulled backward between the forked prongs of the arrow rest 22, the shaft of the arrow 30 rubs against the friction material 34 to cause the arrow rest 21 to rotate backward. The arrow rest 21 stops its backward rotation when the shaft of the arrow 30 is received in the distal support 38. The friction material 34 may comprise any pad, tube, or strip of material that provides enough friction to rotate the arrow rest 21 backward as the arrow 30 is being pulled backward. The friction material 34 may comprise strips of high friction, low tack polyurethane, such as that often used to improve grip on tennis racquet handles and hockey sticks. The friction material 34 may be a strip of rubber, latex or coarse fabric.

Referring now to FIGS. 5 and 6, cross-sectional views of the arrow rest 21 are shown to illustrate over rotation of the arrow rest 21 in the forward direction after propelling the arrow 30 forward with the sling bow 9. After tensioning the slings 16 and releasing the arrow 30, the suspension band 24 rotates the arrow rest 21 forward toward the at-rest position shown in FIG. 3A. The arrow rest 21 also over rotates to the forward position shown in FIGS. 5 and 6. The momentum of the arrow rest 21 over rotates the arrow rest 21 so that the arrow rest 21 goes beyond the at-rest position. This over rotation is shown by a comparison of FIGS. 3A and 5. FIG. 3A illustrates the arrow rest 21 in its initial at-rest position. FIG. 5 illustrates arrow rest 21 when the arrow 30 is being propelled forward. Additionally, the shaft of the arrow 30 may contact the friction material 34 to push the arrow rest 21 beyond the at-rest position to the forward position (see FIGS. 5 and 6). The over rotation of the arrow rest 21 may be from the momentum of the arrow rest toward the at-rest position from the back position. By the time the vanes 32 of the arrow 30 contact the arrow rest 21, the forked prongs 22 are over rotated and disposed out of the way as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6. The forward curvature of the forked prongs 22 of the arrow rest 21 also allows the vanes 32 or feathers of the arrow 30 to glide over the forked prongs 22 of the arrow rest 21. This helps to mitigate damage to the vanes or feathers 32 of the arrow 30 due to contact between the arrow 30 and the forked prongs 22. Because damage may be avoided in this manner, arrows may be reused, thus reducing a user's cost of replacement. Also, the arrow rest 21 is deflected in the same direction as an arrow's trajectory since the arrow rest 21 is suspended by the elastic suspension band 24. This minimizes not only damage to the arrow rest 21 but also interruption of the arrow's intended path. This leads to more accurate shooting of the arrow 30 to the target.

Moreover, interruption to the arrow's intended path may be further minimized by positioning the arrow rest assembly within the sling bow frame 10 so that when the slings 16 are tensioned and the pouch 18 pulled back to prepare a shot, the contact point or proximal support 48 of the forked prongs 22 of the arrow rest 21 may be positioned below the plane 42. As such, when the arrow 30 is released, the arrow rest 21 does not interfere with the forward trajectory of the arrow 30. This may further ensure that the vanes or feathers 32 of the arrow 30 may glide over the arrow rest 21 with minimal interruption to the trajectory of the arrow 30.

Damage to the arrow rest assembly 20 by repeated impact of the sling pouch 18 and the vanes 32 of the arrow 30 may be mitigated due to the elastic suspension band 24. The suspension band 24 absorbs the shock of impact and moreover allow the arrow rest 21 to forwardly deflect and diffuse such forces. Thus, the entire arrow rest assembly 20 experiences less shock from impact by the pouch 18 and the vanes 32 of the arrow 30.

A kit containing the elements comprising the arrow rest 21, suspension band 24, and clamping devices 26 may also be provided so that a user may assemble his or her own arrow rest 21 to convert a sling shot to a sling bow 9.

The slings 16 may be attached to opposed sides of the sling pouch 18 such as with connecting members 19. The sling pouch 18 may be, for example, a rectangular panel of rugged material (e.g., leather) about 2 to about 5 cm in height, and about 5 to about 15 cm across. However it is contemplated that larger or smaller sling pouches 18 may be employed as desired. The sling pouch 18 may be adapted for use with an arrow by including a hole in the center and forming a strip (i.e., nock receiver 17) going across the hole to accommodate the nock 54 in the back end of the arrow 30. The sling pouch 18 may comprise any rugged material that will withstand wear and tear from the repeatedly drawing an arrow against it. Such materials may include for example leather, canvas, corduroy, nylon, or vinyl. Thus configured, the nock 54 of the arrow 30 may sturdily engage the sling pouch 18, once again contributing to the accuracy of the shot because the arrow will not accidentally move around when drawing the arrow 30 back and upon release of the arrow 30. The sling pouch 18, as with all other parts of this sling shot to sling bow conversion, are easily removable and replaceable at a user's discretion.

The above description is given by way of example, and not limitation. Given the above disclosure, one skilled in the art could devise variations that are within the scope and spirit of the invention disclosed herein, including various ways of maintaining the arrow rest assembly in its connection to the forked arms of the sling bow frame 10. Further, the various features of the embodiments disclosed herein can be used alone, or in varying combinations with each other and are not intended to be limited to the specific combination described herein. Thus, the scope of the claims is not to be limited by the illustrated embodiments. 

1. A sling bow for shooting an arrow, the sling bow comprising: a sling bow frame including a hand grip with upper and lower portions, first and second forked arms that extend from the upper portion of the hand grip, the first and second forked arms each having end portions; first and second slings respectively attached to the end portions of the first and second forked arms; a sling pouch having a nock receiver, the first and second slings being attached to opposed end portions of the sling pouch; first and second suspension bands extending inwardly towards each other, the first and second suspension bands respectively attached to the first and second forked arms independent of the attachment of the first and second slings to the first and second forked arms, the first and second suspension bands each fabricated from an elongate elastic material; an arrow rest attached to the inwardly directed first and second suspension bands for elastically suspending the arrow rest between the first, and second forked arms, the arrow rest having a slot that receives the arrow; wherein the slot of the arrow rest rotates out of a forward path, of the arrow when the arrow is propelled forward with, the sling bow.
 2. The sling bow of claim 1 wherein two suspension bands are attached to each of the forked arms of the sling bow frame for positioning a forward to rearward rotational angle of the arrow rest at an at-rest position, a contact surface of the arrow rest for supporting a shaft of the arrow being positioned at or below a plane defined by the first and second slings for mitigating interference with the arrow as the arrow is being propelled forward by the first and second slings.
 3. The sling bow of claim 2 wherein the arrow rest has a distal support so that the shaft of the arrow is supported by the contact surface and the distal support when the arrow is pulled backward, and the arrow rest is positioned in the backward position.
 4. The sling bow of claim 3 wherein the forked prongs has an outer surface having a coefficient of friction sufficient to allow rearward travel, of the arrow to cause frictional forces between the shaft of the arrow and the outer surface to rotate the arrow rest to the backward position.
 5. A conversion kit for converting a sling shot to a sling bow, the sling shot including a frame having a hand grip with an upper and a lower portion, a first and second forked arms that extend from, the upper portion of the hand grip, the forked arms each having end portions, first and second slings attachable to the end, portions of the forked arms, a sling pouch having a nock receiver, the first and second slings being attached to opposed end portions of the sling pouch, the kit comprising: first and second suspension bands extending inwardly towards each other when respectively attached to the first and second forked arms, the attachment of the first and second suspension bands being independent from the attachment of the first and second slings to the first and second forked arms, the first and second suspension bands fabricated from an elongate elastic material; an arrow rest attached to the inwardly directed first and second suspension bands for elastically suspending the arrow rest between the forked arms, the arrow rest having a slot, that receives the arrow.
 6. The conversion kit of claim 5 wherein two suspension bands are attachable to each of the forked arms of the frame for positioning a forward to rearward rotational angle of the arrow rest at an at-rest position, a contact surface of the arrow rest for supporting a shaft of the arrow being positioned at or below a plane defined by the first and second slings when attached to the forked arms and tensioned for mitigating interference with the arrow as the arrow is being propelled forward by the first and second slings.
 7. The sling how of claim 6 wherein the arrow rest has a distal support so that the shaft of the arrow is supported by the contact surface and the distal support when the arrow is pulled backward, and the arrow rest is positioned in the backward position during use.
 8. The sling bow of claim 7 wherein the forked prongs has an outer surface having a coefficient of friction sufficient to allow rearward travel of the arrow to cause frictional forces between the shaft of the arrow and the outer surface to rotate the arrow rest to the backward position during use.
 9. A method tor using a sling bow, the method comprising the steps of: disposing a nock of an arrow in a nock receiver; disposing a shaft of the arrow between forked prongs and within a support of an arrow rest; pulling the nock of the arrow and the nock receiver rearward to tension slings of the sling bow; rotating the arrow rest from an at-rest position to a backward, position due to frictional forces between an outer surface of forked prongs of the arrow rest and the shaft of the arrow; twisting inwardly directed suspension bands during, the rotating step: releasing the nock of the arrow and the nock receiver so that the tensioned slings propel the arrow toward a target; rotating the arrow rest toward the at-rest position as the arrow travels forward under a power of the twisted suspension bands: over rotating the arrow rest to a forward position under the power of the twisted suspension hands so that the forked prongs are traversed out of the way to mitigate interference with the arrows trajectory; absorbing impact forces of the nock receiver on the arrow rest.
 10. The method, of claim 9 wherein the step of rotating the arrow rest from the at-rest position to the backward position includes the step of biasing the arrow rest toward the at-rest position with the twisted suspension bands.
 11. The method of claim 10 wherein the biasing the arrow rest step includes the step of twisting two suspension bands attached to the arrow rest.
 12. The method of claim 9 wherein the absorbing step includes the step of deflecting the arrow rest by way of the suspension bands.
 13. The sling bow of claim 1 wherein the slot is two prongs extending upwards from a base of the arrow rest.
 14. The sling bow of claim 1 wherein the slot is two prongs extending upwards from a base of the arrow rest. 